Snowlight Chapter 9 - 8 and 9

 

Chapter 8

 

 

“Huh?”

 

“Well, we just happened to come across this situation by chance while passing through, and besides, we haven’t finished our business yet.”

 

It was a response that didn’t quite add up. Hadn’t he just ordered the men to get ready to head back? Or was their destination another town? But if that were the case, they could have simply gone on their way without asking for permission. Somehow, the way he was beating around the bush made it seem as though he didn’t want to bring Yu Won into this.

 

Yu Won swallowed a sigh. Should he just insist on going with them, even if it meant being unreasonable? But he couldn’t do that. They weren’t hired help; they were just hunters passing through, weren’t they? Besides, no matter how much help he’d received, these were strangers to Yu Won. Having already weathered one storm, he didn’t want to join them rashly. If that was the case, there was no other option but to go alone, and that prospect was just as daunting.

 

They said it would take half a day. Half a day. Yu Won stared blankly at the road stretching out before him. He had to get to Wonhye. Even if he died, he had to die in Wonhye. If he didn’t, his father would abandon his sick mother in a distant place while he was away. He couldn’t let him treat her blind mother that way.

 

The braying of a donkey sounded nearby. A saddled donkey was pacing alone under a tree. It was the donkey Madam Choi had been riding.

 

“Good girl. It’s okay.”

 

Yu Won approached the donkey, cupped its head in both hands, and soothed it gently. The donkey, which had been snorting nervously, calmed down immediately.

 

“If you just tell me the direction, I’ll find my way on my own.”

 

It was a request, yet his tone was firm. Given how far he had gone, he couldn’t very well pretend not to know the way. Kwak Hyeon Wook sighed and pointed over the hill. He had said that if he just followed the road straight up toward the northwest, he would reach Wonhye, and it was indeed true that it wasn’t far from here.

 

Yu Won took off the coat he was wearing and tried to return it to Kwak Hyeon Wook. Kwak Hyeon Wook waved his hand dismissively.

 

“Just keep that, young master.”

 

“How can I accept such a valuable item with empty hands?”

 

“It’s just a common leather coat around here. Besides, it’s so cold out today; it would be difficult for you to walk the mountain path without a coat. Please consider this a small token of my gratitude for your visit.”

 

Since he insisted on not taking it back, Yu Won had no choice but to bow his head in gratitude. Kwak Hyeon Wook mounted his horse, paced anxiously for a while before finally turning his horse around with some difficulty.

 

The sound of hooves faded away. Yu Won was left alone once more. He felt a sense of emptiness, but he wasn’t sad. It was his daily routine to avoid the herbalists’ gaze while foraging for medicinal herbs in the forests near the capital.

 

He readjusted the saddle and loaded his pack onto the donkey’s back. Having hidden it under the palanquin to keep it from being stolen, the silk cloth had become soaked and was in a sorry state. Fortunately, the letter he’d tucked inside the letter envelope was still intact.

 

Gazing up at the bright, full moon, Yu Won exhaled deeply. How truly beautiful it is. The moon was as bright as ever, as if completely unaware of the series of misfortunes that had just occurred. Still, thanks to the moonlight, the mountain path wasn’t too dark, even without a lantern.

 

He was walking along when he heard a rustling sound coming from deep within the forest. Yu Won stopped dead in his tracks and stared intently at the source of the sound. Was it a demonic beast drawn by the scent of blood? The sound wasn’t loud, so it could have been a small rabbit, or perhaps a fox or a weasel.

 

A figure slipped into view through the rustling foliage. It was slightly larger than he had expected. Grabbing a branch, Yu Won cautiously made his way toward the thicket, which was thickly covered with snow and fallen leaves. If he left it be and ran away, he might be ambushed from behind. Whether it was a ghost or a beast, it seemed better to lure it out into the open.

 

What crawled out of the thicket was neither a ghost nor a wild animal.

 

“Youngest?”

 

It was the young boy, the servant who had been accompanying Madam Choi. Thank goodness, it’s a person. Yu Won lowered the hand holding the branch and sighed in relief, patting his chest. The young servant swallowed his sobs and said,

 

“Ah, young master. I’m so relieved you’re safe.”

 

“What about the madam? Where is she?”

 

“T-t-the madam, the madam… s-s-she was struck by a sword while trying to flee. So, so….”

 

Unable to finish his sentence, the young servant let his tears fall. Sadly, it seemed he, too, had met with a tragic situation while fleeing from the bandits. Yu Won approached the sobbing boy and wiped his wet cheeks and nose with his sleeve.

 

“I’m, I’m sorry. I’m, I’m truly sorry. Ah, young master.”

 

The youngest sniffled and repeated only the words “I’m sorry.” Even though he had abandoned Yu Won and fled, Yu Won couldn’t blame him. He was just a child, barely fourteen years old. Even armed adult men had fled in terror.

 

How on earth could a child have handled that situation so cleverly? Yu Won felt sorry for Madam Choi, but it was a miracle that at least one person had survived.

 

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt badly?”

 

“I-I’m fine. Ugh…”

 

The youngest suddenly winced and groaned, squinting one eye. Upon closer inspection, he was a mess. His pants were torn lengthwise, blood pooled on both knees, and his left foot, squeezed into a straw sandal, was swollen as if stung by a bee. It seemed he’d been injured while running up the mountain to escape and had tripped and fallen.

 

Judging by the fact that he could still walk, it probably wasn’t a fracture, but with his ankle swollen that much, it was obvious that even standing would be painful. Even though it was clear he was flinching in pain despite Yu Won’s gentle touch, the youngest shook his head, insisting it was nothing. He was probably enduring it, afraid that if he showed any sign of pain, Yu Won might leave him behind in the mountains.

 

Swallowing a sigh, Yu Won calmed himself, tore a piece of his clothes, and skillfully fashioned a bandage. He placed a suitable branch against the boy’s foot to serve as a splint and wrapped the bandage tightly around it.

 

“Is it any better than before?”

 

“Yes. Whoa, it’s much better!”

 

The youngest wiggled his foot as if in wonder. Even though he had merely placed a stick against the ankle and tied it up, miraculously, the pain seemed to have subsided considerably. Yu Won, having lightly rubbed his hands together, tried to help the youngest onto the donkey. The youngest waved his hands.

 

“N-no, n-no, you should be the one to ride it, young master!”

 

“How do you expect to walk with a leg like that?”

 

“Ah, no. It’s much less, ah, ah, it doesn’t hurt as much as before.”

 

“It’s just a temporary fix; that’s why it feels that way. If you push yourself too hard, you might never be able to use your leg again. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

 

Frightened by the thought of becoming crippled, the boy could no longer refuse and clumsily climbed onto the donkey’s back. His hesitant, cautious expression was quite awkward and embarrassed. This was because, until now, he had only ever pulled the donkey or the cart his master rode in, never having been served himself.

 

Fearing he might be shaken loose and fall, Yu Won secured the saddle firmly around the youngest’s waist and said kindly,

 

“If you walk carefully for a day, it’ll be fine. If you go see the doctor, he’ll fix you right up.”

 

“Yes.”

 

The youngest nodded weakly. Instead of offering words of comfort, Yu Won brushed aside the young servant’s messy bangs and smoothed them down.

 

The wind had felt damp, and now snowflakes began to flutter down. It was cold. As the wind hit his cheeks and the nape of his neck, Yu Won hunched his shoulders deeply.

 

 

 

The head monk had passed away during the last heavy snowfall. The monk who had taken over the abandoned mountain temple sold off the land at a bargain price instead of repairing it. The place where the mother and child had lived crumbled in an instant. So, as she packed their belongings, the mother said resolutely,

 

‘My child, let’s go to the capital.’

 

‘Why the capital?’

 

‘There is someone there whom your mother knows.’

 

It was a journey that took nearly a month just to travel from the south to the northern provinces. The mother could not see well, so her steps were slow. With the meager travel funds they had, it was difficult even to hire a single carriage.

 

The capital, which they barely managed to reach, was a magnificent city. Carriages and carts passed ceaselessly along the streets paved with smooth stones, and the marketplace was bustling. It was a world apart from the mountain temple, where, aside from the dense trees and the echoing songs of birds, one rarely saw a soul.

 

When asked about the residence of the nobleman Hong Se Hwan, the innkeeper narrowed his eyes. The Hong family was a clan of great influence, even within the Four Great Gates, where many high-ranking nobles resided; they were a family of such power that they owned a house on a site with a clear view of the palace.

 

Grand Minister Hong In Gyo, whose reputation was so high that he was often mentioned as a candidate for one of the Three Highest Ministers, had retired from office the previous year. However, as the saying goes, “like father, like son”; his eldest son, Hong Se Hwan, had distinguished himself a few years prior by uncovering the ringleader of a rebellion during a secret mission to the southern provinces. Riding on the family’s prestige, he was said to be expanding his influence in the court as if he had grown wings.

 

When they said they were there to visit such a distinguished family and asked for the address, curiosity was bound to arise. The innkeeper narrowed his eyes and scanned the two guests. The young woman, wrapped in a worn-out overcoat, was as beautiful as a fairy despite her shabby appearance. They say a pretty wife brings good fortune, but the problem was the small child clinging tightly to her side.

 

A woman from out of town with a child in tow. It seemed as though a story was already taking shape in their mind. Sure enough, even the men slurping down their soup from behind cast curious glances their way. She suspected that before long, unsavory rumors of an illicit affair would be circulating in the marketplace.

 

After all, everyone knew that the eldest son, Hong Se Hwan, had gotten married just last year. But who were they to comment on another’s affairs? Swallowing a sympathetic sigh, the innkeeper silently gestured toward the inner city.

 

So, taking the mother’s hand, they arrived at a tiled-roof house that stood out even among the splendid residences of the capital.

 

The mother, wearing a long robe, knocked on the gate several times. After a long while, an old woman with her hair tied up in a bun appeared.

 

“Who are you, and why have you come to the magistrate’s residence?”

 

Her voice was sharp. The mother stepped forward hesitantly toward the source of the voice and cautiously explained the purpose of her visit.

 

“Excuse me. I wish to see Mr. Hong Se Hwan, who lives here.”

 

“The young master?”

 

“Yes. If you say I’m from Myeongnaesa Temple, he will know. This is a letter written by a monk who used to reside at that mountain temple, speaking on my behalf.”

 

The mother took out the letter she had been carefully keeping in her bosom and handed it over. She explained that it was a letter the head monk had written for her some time ago. The old woman raised her wrinkled eyes and stared intently at the mother. Then, she turned her gaze to Yu Won, who was hiding in the folds of her skirt.

 

It was a cold, unfeeling stare, as if she were appraising some kind of object.

 

 

 

******

 

Chapter 9

‘Good heavens, what’s going on?’

 

‘If the lady of the house finds out, she’ll be furious.’

 

The servants watching from behind the gate whispered among themselves. The old woman, who had snatched the letter from the mother’s hand, sighed and replied.

 

‘The young master has gone to the palace on official business. He won’t be back until late tonight, so it’s difficult to see him right now. Please come back another time.’

 

‘Then, may I wait here until the young master returns?’

 

She must have known it was a veiled refusal, yet she answered that she would wait steadfastly, and the old woman clicked her tongue in exasperation. It is truly fortunate that the lady of the house has gone to her parents’ home for her postpartum confinement.

 

She was a woman who looked to be no more than twenty-three at most. If she were to hurl insults at her and chase her away, it would only lead to unnecessary gossip in the marketplace. It was better to pretend not to notice and turn a blind eye.

 

So she sternly ordered the servants to lock the gate and keep their mouths shut, and even the young servants coming and going paid them no mind. And so, they had been standing helplessly outside the tightly locked gate, waiting for several hours now.

 

It was getting dark. The fine snowflakes were heavy with moisture, and his forehead and cheeks were soaked. It was sleet.

 

‘Mom, let’s just go home.’

 

Yu Won tugged at his mother’s hand and whined. Even though he had finally arrived in the capital he had only heard about, he wasn’t happy at all. The passersby were all cold and unfeeling, and they often whispered and giggled when they saw him and her mother.

 

‘My dear, just hold on a little longer. Okay?’

 

‘But…’

 

Yu Won pouted and hung his head. He hadn’t eaten anything since the bowl of cold porridge he’d been given that morning, so he was starving. And that wasn’t all. Having walked for half of the past ten days, his feet ached as if they were about to burst, and his eyelids felt heavy.

 

It wasn’t just Yu Won who was exhausted. During the journey to the capital, his mother hadn’t had a single good night’s sleep. Her clothes were thin, and the only thing protecting her from the cold was an old scarf. Yet his mother hadn’t complained once. If the head monk had seen her, he would have been deeply distressed.

 

‘I want to go back.’

 

He wanted to return to the mountain temple filled with birdsong. Then, missing the head monk, who had loved him like his own grandchild, tears welled up in his eyes.

 

He missed the head monk. He wished he could be held in his arms; he would warm him up the moment he mentioned feeling cold, but now that he had passed away, he could never see him again. Hearing his sniffles, his mother gently wiped the tears from Yu Won’s wet cheeks.

 

‘Let’s just greet your father. Then we’ll go home. Okay?’

 

‘When is father coming?’

 

‘Soon. He’ll be here any minute.’

 

He had heard the word “soon” countless times already. But instead of throwing another tantrum, Yu Won wiped his tears with the back of his hand and nodded quietly. He didn’t want to worry his mother, who was already anxious enough.

 

‘What a good boy.’

 

His mother wrapped the scarf he had been wearing around Yu Won’s neck. The scarf, imbued with his mother’s warmth, was as comforting as a hug.

 

His biological father, who had been wandering from place to place seeking a cure for an unknown illness, had come down to a mountain temple in the south for recuperation and met his mother there. After spending half a year together, just before he set off on his return journey, he gave a prenatal name to the child she was carrying, and that child was the Yu Won of today.

 

Born and raised at the mountain temple, Yu Won had never once seen his father. Whenever he asked why, his mother would comfort him by saying his father was too busy to come down to the temple. As a result, all that the young Yu Won knew about his father came from the few words his mother had shared.

 

‘Your father, you see, was a truly kind and wonderful man.’

 

Whenever she thought of her beloved, her face would glow with a radiance more beautiful than the blooming flowers of spring. Even to a child’s eyes, she was lovely, and it was clear that his father had fallen for her precisely because of that.

 

He wished his father would come back soon. He’ll surely be happy to see his mother. It’s been so long since they’ve seen each other.

 

A crescent moon rose in the pitch-black sky. The shadows cast by the wall made the surroundings even darker. As Yu Won huddled by the front gate to avoid the drizzling sleet, the flickering light of a lantern danced before his eyes.

 

In the distance, palanquin bearers were approaching, carrying the palanquin. Soon, a man dressed in a blue robe stepped down from the palanquin, attended to with practiced ease.

 

‘You’ve returned, Master.’

 

The old woman who had come out to greet them spoke respectfully. At that, his mother gripped Yu Won’s hand tightly. He could feel her mother’s cold, stiff fingertips trembling.

 

It was that tremor that finally convinced Yu Won. The man standing before him was the father his mother had spoken of so often. Would he be happy to see him? What kind of expression would he wear when he saw him? His heart pounded wildly with anticipation and excitement.

 

“She… she’s from Myeongnaesa Temple in Namwon. Even when we tried to send her back, she insisted on seeing the master and wouldn’t budge…”

 

The old woman, gauging her master’s expression, cautiously explained the presence of the mother and son standing by the gate. At that moment, his mother took a step forward.

 

The voice calling out “My Lord” was moist and yearning. Had she not traveled all the way from the southern provinces, with nothing but the clothes on her back, for nearly ten days, just to meet the one and only man she loved and the father of her child?

 

Only then did the man’s gaze turn toward her. His face, as elegant as a white plum blossom in spring, was filled with icy fury. Furrowing his well-groomed brows, the man looked at Yu Won, who was standing awkwardly behind her skirt. He stared intently at Yu Won for a long time before letting out a deep sigh.

 

‘I never thought she’d actually bear and raise the child.’ 

 

The muttered words brushed past his ear.

 

“It’s cold out here. Go warm up some wine.”

 

“Then what about them…?”

 

Despite the old woman’s question, the man entered the gate without a word. His mother reached out hastily, but she didn’t even have time to grab his sleeve. The old woman sighed and gave a nod to a servant, who brought a bowl of salt and scattered it liberally, as if to ward off evil spirits.

 

The gate closed. And it never opened again.

 

The heavy rain began to patter down, soaking their feet. After standing silently for a long while under the pouring rain, the mother grabbed Yu Won’s hand and turned to leave.

 

That day, Yu Won caught a cold. For ten straight days while he lay ill, his father never once came to visit. It was late winter when Yu Won was just five years old.

 

The Hong clan of Namyeong.

 

Even in Okyang, a gathering of the most prominent aristocrats, they were a renowned family of founding meritorious subjects, the very epitome of the yangban class, having served the dynasty and the nation with unwavering loyalty for the past three hundred years.

 

In this impeccable, distinguished family, Yu Won’s very existence was a stain on the clan’s honor.

 

Yu Won lived with his mother in a dilapidated thatched cottage in the most remote slum of the capital. It was a refuge provided by his biological grandmother, who, unable to bear the rumors circulating in the marketplace, had sent them away, warning them to keep a low profile.

 

“Oh my, how disgraceful. How could such vulgar creatures have moved in here?”

 

“Well, I heard she seduced a nobleman into an illicit affair and then had the nerve to show up at the governor’s residence. She’s nothing short of a vixen.”

 

“He must be blind not to see what’s right in front of him. The child takes after his mother; he’s incredibly tenacious.”

 

Whenever he and his mother ventured out, the neighbors’ whispers would pour down on them. To the villagers, the two were unclean and sacrilegious. Since the adults treated them with contempt, even the children of his own age inevitably followed suit.

 

“Did you see his eyes? They’re different colors. Ugh.”

 

“My mom heard at the market that his mother was a demon who used to live in the mountains. They say a mere demon seduced a decent man, and that’s how that monster of a child was born.”

 

They said he’d been born with eyes like this. Two irises of different colors. One was a pale blue, and everyone who saw it pointed and called him a monster. He could ignore the insults directed at him, but he hated hearing them aimed at his mother.

 

He hated his own face so much that he never looked at it properly. It must have been ugly and hideous, unlike his mother’s. That must be why he was treated that way. He thought that if he covered his face, maybe the insults would lessen, so he deliberately went around with his hair in a messy, disheveled state, but people’s attitudes didn’t change. The neighborhood kids would constantly mock him, calling him a “monster,” and they were always throwing stones or dog poop at him.

 

After a few years, the mockery became bearable. So what if he’s a monster? Even that monster had a home to return to and a mother. As long as he could live happily and peacefully with his mother, what did it matter? His mother was Yu Won’s teacher, his friend, and the world itself.

 

Until the day his mother collapsed, he had believed that this small happiness would last forever.

 

The illness that struck suddenly ravaged his gentle, kind mother. She could not even swallow a single wild strawberry, let alone rice gruel. At night, she moaned in fever, and not a single day passed without the sheets drying from her cold sweat.

 

“I’ve treated patients all my life, but this is a condition I simply cannot fathom.”

 

The doctor shook his head after taking her pulse. Perhaps it was a case of hwabyung, or a heavy heart. Even when he brought in renowned doctors, they all said the same thing. At best, they would prescribe some tonic to help her recover.

 

From that day on, his mother would lie awake every night, staring into the distance.

 

“Yu Won-ah, is it my husband who has come? I heard your father’s footsteps. My lord, my lord, you have finally come to see me.”

 

As the days she spent sobbing while searching for someone who would never come grew more frequent, it was often only by giving her sleeping pills that they could barely get through the night.

 

There was nothing he wouldn’t do to afford the medicine. If someone offered money, he’d take any job that came his way. He didn’t refuse anything, from tending to the latrines to running errands at gambling dens, so some people even exploited him without paying a penny.

 

Though his mother could not see, she could discern the efficacy of medicinal herbs simply by their scent. Having grown up under her guidance, Yu Won, even at such a young age, knew medicinal herbs as well as any seasoned herbalist.

 

And so, Yu Won roamed the mountains gathering herbs. He would boil some for his mother and take the rest to the pharmacy, where he could earn a small amount of money.

 

The pharmacy, which had been gaining a reputation by word of mouth, soon became famous. With customers flocking in from all over the country, the place was bustling with activity. The owner, who had once been stingy with even a few pennies, kept Yu Won on as a staff day and night instead of firing him. Even when the doctor tried to take credit for his work, Yu Won never complained. There was no better place than the pharmacy to find the exact herbs his mother needed.

 

And so, for five years, he spent his days boiling herbal decoctions at the pharmacy, scalding his hands in the process, and his nights gathering medicinal herbs until his fingernails wore down and his palms cracked.

 

On the first day of the twelfth lunar month, as sleet swirled through the air, a messenger arrived from the Four Great Gates.

 

The message was that Lord Hong Se Hwan, Minister of Personnel, was urgently seeking Yu Won.